Micah Bleecher No Comments

The Top Ten Things you need to know about Homeowners Insurance

Why should you wait until after a disaster to discover your homeowners insurance doesn’t really have you covered? Here are ten important things to do so you can have peace of mind — and full protection — right now:

1. Buy the right insurance for you. “You should know what you have, and you should know ahead of time that you are covered,” says Jeanne Salvatore, vice president for consumer affairs with the Insurance Information Institute, a nonprofit industry trade group. She recommends looking at your insurance coverage in four key areas: the structure of your house, your belongings, your liability to others and your living expenses if you’re forced out. “If there’s a disaster, you want to be able to rebuild your house and replace everything in it. And you need enough liability coverage to protect you in case you do get sued.” Living expenses would cover the cost of making the house livable or living elsewhere while your home is being repaired or rebuilt.

2. Get replacement value insurance. Face it, this is an insurance policy, not a garage sale. You don’t really care how much your possessions would fetch on the open market, the so-called “cash value” or “fair market value.” You want to be able to replace everything you lost with similar, new items. And make sure that your policy spells out that both your home and its contents are covered by replacement-value insurance.

When it comes to replacing the house itself, look for extended or guaranteed-replacement-value coverage. Guaranteed replacement, which covers rebuilding no matter what the cost, is not offered much any more, says Don Griffin, assistant vice president of commercial lines for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI). Many companies offer extended-replacement-value insurance, which will cover up to 100 percent of the value of the home, plus a certain percentage to cover rebuilding the home in today’s market.

3. Understand the claims process thoroughly. Two policies can promise the same amount of coverage, but they can be vastly different when it comes to covering you and your family after a loss. Have your insurance agent explain exactly how claims are handled, especially when it comes to writing you a check. Do you receive your entire claim upfront, or just a fraction? Does the company pay you for all the things you’ve lost, or only those things that you replace?

Some policies will give you the cash value of your possessions right after a loss, but wait to cover the replacement value until after you’ve replaced your items — and have the receipts to prove it. This could be a problem if you’re wiped out and have no cash reserves.

Equally important is the timetable on replacement. If you go from living in a five-bedroom home to sleeping in a motel room with four kids and a dog, you might not want to go on a shopping spree right away. How long do you have to replace your things?

4. Take a thorough and accurate inventory. Filing a claim involves two steps — proving you owned certain items and verifying their worth. This is a lot easier to do when you still have your things. Go through your entire home with a video camera (rent one if you don’t already have one.) Walk through each room, do a quick sweep and get everything you own on tape. Don’t forget the attic, basement, closets and offsite storage locker, if you have one. Or take the low-tech method: make a list and shoot a few rolls of film. Stash your video or photos in a safety deposit box with a copy of your policy. If you keep your inventory at home, make a second copy to give to a friend or keep at the office.

5. Buy floaters. Many times, home insurance and renter’s insurance policies limit the amount you can collect on some big-ticket items — usually things like computer equipment, jewelry, furs and fine collectibles — to a fraction of the replacement value. If this is the case, you need to pick up a special policy known as a “floater” or “endorsement” for each of those items. A floater will also reimburse you if you simply lose the article. In the case of something new, save the bill of sale with your inventory, and fax a copy to your insurance agent. If the item is older, have an appraisal done. Again, save one copy and send another to your agent. That way, you’ll never have to worry about proving you owned an item, and there will never be a dispute over what it’s really worth.

6. Keep pace with inflation. This is especially important with a homeowners insurance policy. It may have cost you $100,000 to build your home 10 years ago, but it might cost $120,000 to replace it today. “Many insurance companies have inflation guard, which covers the increasing cost of rebuilding,” Salvatore says. When your policy comes up for renewal, talk to your agent to verify that your coverage amounts are still realistic. And when you make an improvement, add it to the total.

7. If you own a condo or co-op, protect your property. Make sure that the condo board or association has a policy that covers the common areas, and get a copy. Also look at the association bylaws to find out what portions of the home you must cover. “It’s usually from the drywall in,” Griffin says.

Since condo owners need their contents policy to cover things like cabinets and fixtures, they need a bit more insurance than the typical renter. Sometimes you get a price break if you go with the same company that wrote the policy for the condo association.

“Plus they are familiar with what they cover, so they know what to sell you,” Griffin says.

You also may want to consider assessment coverage. If the condo association’s policy is not large enough to cover a loss, or if there is a hefty deductible, the association will split the additional costs among the members in the form of an assessment. With assessment coverage, your insurance company pays the tab.

8. Consider flood and earthquake insurance. Granted, this is not for everyone. But if you live in an area prone to floods or earthquakes, it pays to know that most property policies do not cover these disasters. Some independent carriers offer both. For flood insurance, you can also contact the National Flood Insurance Program. In California, you can get earthquake insurance through the California Earthquake Authority.

9. Think about buying an umbrella policy. Liability insurance, which picks up the tab if someone gets hurt on your property or through the actions of your family members, tops out at $300,000 on most homeowners insurance policies, according to Griffin. “But nobody sues for $300,000,” he says. “That usually starts at $1 million.” His recommendation: if you have assets, pick up an umbrella policy that would add extra liability coverage to your home and auto policy. “Umbrellas are cheap — usually starting at about $200 to $350 a year.”

10. After a life-changing event, call your agent. Getting married or divorced? Are the kids moving out — or back in? The amount of home insurance you need — and the items you want to cover — change over the years. Be sure you keep your policies and inventories up to date.

Micah Bleecher No Comments

Tips for Buying a New Home

Buying a new home can be a daunting task, even for someone who has owned several homes. If you recently purchased your first home, you probably found that is hard to find good advice that is truly useful. You had to learn a lot on our own, but at least now you probably feel comfortable and knowledgeable about the whole process.

My wife and I recently purchased a new home in Las Vegas.  Here are some helpful hints we picked up along the way:

1. Use all of the online resources available.

Almost every state and local government has a website where you can research real estate information. The data on home sales, taxes, and neighborhoods is invaluable when you are shopping for a home. We were able to find out the most recent sale prices in the neighborhood we selected, and we didn’t have to rely on a real estate agent to get the data for us. Doing the research yourself will make you more knowledgeable about the market, which is key to making a good purchase.

2. Be realistic about how much you can spend.

Try to buy a home in a price range that allows you to put down 20%. If you put down less than this, you will have to pay PMI (private mortgage insurance) to protect the lender in case you default on the loan. I know that 20% is a lot, but it’s not unrealistic. You may not be able to do it on your first home, but hopefully you can on your second home. The profits from the sale of my condo enabled my husband and me to have more than enough for the 20% down payment on our home. But we didn’t put it all down on the home – we saved some of the profits for the unexpected expenses that come with buying a home. We suggest that you do the same.

3. Shop for a home in the winter, preferably around the holidays.

Since most people just aren’t interested in buying a home when they are trying to deal with the holidays, you can pretty much be one of the few buyers out there. We bought our home right before Christmas, and it was definitely a buyers market. We had our pick of homes and were able to underbid on the asking price, even though we live in one of the hottest real estate markets in the country.

4. Use a smaller mortgage company that can offer personal service.

People tend to go with large, well-known mortgage companies, since that’s all they know. But the smaller, regional companies provide excellent customer service, and can often give you better rates than the big companies. Since they don’t advertise and instead rely on word-of-mouth, they have to be good in order to get your service. We started off with a big-name company, but in the end, we went with a regional company because they had better rates and better customer service.

5. Always have a home inspection.

I think most people know this fact already, but it is really important in areas with a hot real estate market. It can be easy to get caught up in bidding wars, and to want to get a house at all costs. Some friends of ours wanted a house so badly that not only did they overbid, but they also waived the home inspection. They got the house – and right along with it they got several thousand dollars worth of damage that would have been found in an inspection.

As a final note, try to remember that buying a home doesn’t have to be scary. It’s very exciting to own your own home, so think of all the good things that will come once you have made it through the home-buying process. If you follow the advice above, then you should be well-equipped to make it through unscathed.

6. Save money and shop for your home insurance the easy way! Call Maria at 702.477.7776

So why not get started today and call Micah and Maria at 702-477-7776 for excellent advice from Bleecher Insurance Advisors

Micah Bleecher No Comments

More Home Insurance Tips for Savings

Increase Your Deductible

Just like auto insurance, policies have deductibles, and the same rule of thumb applies–carry the highest deductible you can afford.  The higher your deductible, the more premium credit you can expect to receive from your insurance company.  Your savings could reach 25% by increasing the deductible from $100 to $1000.

Improve Your Home Security

Most insurance companies offer discounts for smoke detectors, burglar alarms, dead bolts, fire extinguishers, and Neighborhood Watch Areas. Homes with a fire and burglar alarm system hooked up to a third-party monitoring company receive higher discounts than homes with local bell alarms.

Consolidate Policies

Insuring two or more vehicles with the same insurance company can save you 10 – 15% on your premiums. If you cover your home insurance and auto insurance together, you can reduce your premiums by another 10 – 15%.

Construction Type

Before buying a home, consider its construction type, such as frame or concrete block and steel (CBS).  A wood frame house typically costs more to insure than one built mostly of concrete.

Verify Distance To Fire Stations And Windstorm Areas

If you live in the country, you’ll probably pay higher rates for your home insurance than if you lived in town. Why? It’s because of the longer distance to your local fire station. If you live more than 5 miles from the nearest fire station, and more than 1,000 feet from a fire hydrant, you will most likely pay a higher premium.

Before purchasing your home, you may want to get a quote for both and flood insurance. Insurance companies may not offer you windstorm or flood coverage, depending upon the area in which you live. If your home is in a hurricane prone area and your insurance company offers windstorm coverage, then installing approved hurricane shutters should result in a premium discount.

Claims Free Record And Renewal Discounts

If you have not had a claim under your policy during the past 3 – 5 consecutive years, you could receive up to a 15% discount, depending on the insurance company. Plus, most companies will discount your premium if your policy has been in force for 3 straight years.

Mortgage Free Discounts

Some insurance companies target who have paid off their mortgage and offer them premium discounts of up to 5%.

New And Renovated Home Discounts

A majority of insurance companies offer a discount for new homes, and you may qualify if your home was built in the last 10 – 15 years. Also, a recently renovated home costs less to insure, so find out when the last major electrical, heating and plumbing update was completed on the home.

Non-Smokers And Early Retiree Discounts

Some companies offer a non-smokers discount of up to 15% to qualified . To qualify, you must be a non-smoker and you cannot permit smoking in your home by anyone. Retirees or senior citizens are usually offered discounts because insurance companies believe they are home more often and are therefore better able to protect their home against fire and burglary.

Live-In House Keeper

Some insurers offer up to a 2% premium credit if you have a live-in employee as they feel it could reduce the likelihood of burglary.

Conclusion

After reviewing the foregoing savings tips, you may think that if you added up all your credits you could receive a 70 – 90% reduction in your premiums. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. Certain safety or other measures you take may qualify you for being placed with the “preferred” company of a particular insurance group. This “preferred” company will be able to give you more premium credits than a standard company is able to.

So why not get started today and call Micah and Maria at 702-477-7776 for excellent advice from Bleecher Insurance Advisors